The British Government is being blackmailed by criminals who have got their hands on a quantity of plutonium left over from the cold war. There is only one man who knows their identity and can prevent a disaster but he is on the run for a murder he didn’t commit and has no intention of being found. As the authorities attempt to track him down, the clock is ticking and they are running out of … of time. They pin their hopes on the fact that a bunch of amateurs won’t have nuclear technology and the worst they will manage is a dirty bomb. After all, everyone knows they aren’t really that dangerous. People run away from the explosion and the radiation drifts harmlessly into the atmosphere.
But suppose you could change that? What if the terrorists had found a way to keep the radiation near to the ground, encourage people to hang around breathing in death and when you invite them to their own slaughter they come willingly?
They would be dangerous then…wouldn’t they?
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If you like your thrillers brutal and uncompromising as well as tense and exciting, welcome to the world of Nick Sullivan.
Nick is a high-flying banker with a beautiful wife, big house, nice car and a boat. Yes, he has it all, until he and his best friend stumble into the path of three psychos hell bent on inflicting carnage across England. In a matter of hours, Nick has lost everything and is Britain’s most wanted man.
Karla Forbes really knows how to turn the screw, cranking up the tension with every turn of the page, and we readers get dragged right through the wringer alongside the hero. We’re with him for every punch, every setback, every kick in the guts, and from start to finish there’s no let-up. How does this guy keep going, you’ll find yourself asking. But keep going Nick does, and we along with him. Fallout is an exhilarating read, full of twists, turns, curveballs, tragedies and life-lessons. One warning though, you’re going to feel bruised by the end of it, but don’t let that put you off.
Enjoy the ride!
This superb novel is thrilling from the opening pages and never loses its pace. I was immediately drawn to Nick Sullivan and, despite the flash car and gold Rolex, was rooting for him from the start. The first personal blow he encounters, I instantly felt sorry for him. I loved his quirks; his endless quotes, his resourcefulness and his gallows humour. I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather have on my team.
Right from the opening chapter Nick is framed for murder, which is bad enough, but then because of ‘wrong time, wrong place,’ he ends up getting involved in something much more frightening and something which could have devastating effects for the rest of the country. On the run, Nick is left to figure out what the three men, he and his friend rescued, were up to four miles off the Kent coast. The police are chasing Nick, and Nick is chasing the men. Thank goodness for Annelise – his blossoming relationship with her is a real tonic to the action and I love the scene with the left-overs meal. The chase episode involving her left me short of breath and is one of my favourite parts of the whole book.
This novel is full on action, peppered with mysteries which need piecing together. First, Nick must trace the boat and figure where the three men have gone. Forbes’s description of the baddies; Fox, Wilson and Hubner is frightening – they are terrifying, and all have committed horrific crimes in the past. Fox is particularly unpleasant, though Huber is definitely the one to watch. The incident with Sarah Feltham will leave you cold and, just a warning, some of the scenes are brutal. It shows you can trust no one and, as the story races to the end, there is a brilliantly played out disintegration of trust.
This is a story where knowledge of boats is a matter of life and death, and where friendships are tested to the absolute limits. Fully of dirty bombs, kidnapping, nuclear weapons, remote caravan parks and spooks – this is a rip-roaring read with an absolute gem of an ending. Bonfire Night this year will take on a slightly different slant for me – and at last I’ve found the perfect excuse not to help my husband with the gardening.